SYKES, Eric; MILLIGAN, Spike; BISHOP, Michael; PARK, Phil

This version of Cinderella was staged at the London Palladium at Christmas in 1953. It was the making of Julie Andrews, who on the strength of her work in this show was cast in the Broadway production of The Boy Friend, a huge hit which launched her international career. Also among the cast were Max Bygraves, Richard Hearne (Mr. Pastry), and the future Dr. Who Jon Pertwee, who played one of the Ugly Sisters. The reception for the show was generally good, although some critics questioned the its occasional forays into offbeat, off-colour humour. (Step forward, Milligan....).

KING, Jessie M.

Small 8vo, unpaginated. Original deluxe binding, boards lettered in gilt on spine, and gilt illustration and lettering to front panel. Edges... [please click on the image or book title for more details]

[pseud. MATTHEWS, Ronald] COUSINS, Sheila

Second edition, first Obelisk edition. The publisher's note on [vi] states: 'An attack against the book, in the London press, of unprecedented ferocity and vindictiveness caused its withdrawal before publication [by Routledge]. This, the Obelisk edition, published in May 1938, is therefore the first effective edition.' Despite being withdrawn before publication, a few copies of the Routledge edition have survived.

It is sometimes claimed, usually by bookdealers, that this book was written by Graham Greene. It wasn't. Although Greene helped his friend by chipping in with a telling phrase here and there -- phrases he would later quote approvingly when he contrived to review the book -- To Beg I Am Ashamed is almost entirely the work of Ronald Matthews.

[HOWERD, Frankie] COLIN, Sid

First edition. FREELANCE COMEDY WRITER DICK VOSBURGH'S COPY, WITH HIS NOTES TO TITLE PAGE AND OCCASIONAL NOTES AND MARKINGS THROUGHOUT THE TEXT.

Script for the film version of Up Pompeii!, which cast Michael Hordern as Ludicrus, Julie Ege as Voluptua, and Madeleine Smith as Erotica. (The feature film dispensed with the TV show's exclamation mark).

Although his work is uncredited, writer Dick Vosburgh worked on both the TV and film incarnations of Up Pompeii!, a hugely successful show which was worked up by a number of writers from an original idea by Talbot Rothwell.